In Defining Heresy, Irene Bueno investigates the theories and practices of anti-heretical repression in the first half of the fourteenth century, focusing on the figure of Jacques Fournier/Benedict XII (c.1284-1342). Throughout his career as a bishop-inquisitor in Languedoc, theologian, and, eventually, pope at Avignon, Fournier made a multi-faceted contribution to the fight against religious dissent. Making use of judicial, theological, and diplomatic sources, the book sheds light on the multiplicity of methods, discourses, and textual practices mobilized to define the bounds of...

Long before his election as pope in 1334, Jacques Fournier (c. 12851342) had been one of the key figures of the Avignon papal court. Not only was he renowned for rooting out heretics in Languedoc, but he also distinguished himself as a refined theologian, advising John XXII on sensitive doctrinal matters. Once elected, Pope Benedict XII faced some of the most significant and animated religious and political challenges of the time of the Avignon Church: theological quarrels, divisions and schisms within the Church, conflicts between European sovereigns, and the growth of Turkish power in...